A Small Victory

The Yankees Need to Clean House:

Good Bye:
1: David Wells (drunk slob, no work ethic)
2: Aaron Boone (he needs to pine tar his fingers)
3: Enrique Wilson (he ain't no Luis Sojo)
4: Jeff Weaver (needs to learn to pitch)
5: The Rest of the Bullpen
6: Jason Giambi (solo homeruns can only get him so far)

I didn't know it was Giambi's fault the guys ahead of him in the lineup can't get on base.

Learn something new about baseball everyday.

From a Marlins fan, thank you for your congratulatory message. It was a very, very scary (but also excellent) series the whole way.

I note that:

-- Our pitching was pretty good, but Florida's was better. (Had David Wells not had to come out of Game 5, things might have turned out quite differently.)
-- Our hitting seems to have gone to sleep for the Series. That happened in 2001, too.
-- In keeping with the above, all the games Florida won were won by modest margins.

The Yankees continue to be a great team. This was just Florida's year.

I think Joe will survive. The bullpen, other than Mariano will be totally reworked. 3rd base needs work, right field needs work. The lesson here is that it's not how big your payroll is, its how you spend it. How the hell do you spend $168 million and end up with Karim Garcia starting in right field in the World Series?

Torre and Cashman are out the door, this isn't something George will tolerate. Cashman might end up working in another borough.

You know, maybe the Boys In Pinstripes would play a bit better were it not for Baron Von Steingrabber leaning over their shoulders and implying that failing to win every frickin' year is going to result in them being shipped out to Toronto. . .

You know, the one great thing the loathsome Fay Vincent did for the game of baseball was to throw Steinbrenner out of it--it's a shame that his merely inept and irritating successor Bud Selig backed down on that and let him slink back in.

Whew! That was close. Go Fish!

Steinbrenner is never going to get rid of Torre knowing that he's going to go right to the Red Sox.

As a Marlins fan, thank you for your gracious remark. It's been very exciting for us to watch our scrappy, unheralded team playing their hearts out during the playoffs and World Series. For baseball fans, it's been an entertaining postseason, full of great plot lines and surprises.

I know that you Yankee fans have very high expectations for your team, and that nothing short of winning it all will do. It will be interesting to watch the eruption of Mt. St. Steinbrenner in the days to come.

Joe Torre is welcome back in Atlanta anytime.

I didn't know it was Giambi's fault the guys ahead of him in the lineup can't get on base.

Learn something new about baseball everyday.

The point is not whether he can control the OBP of the men in the lineup ahead of him. Obviously, he can't. The point is what his stats are when they are on base.

FWIW, in 2003, Giambi hit 21 HR with the bases empty, and 20 with runners on, so there's essentially no difference. Also, his OBP is .047 higher with runners on than it is with the bases empty, so I'm not sure what Greg thinks Giambi is doing wrong.

"Joe Torre is welcome back in Atlanta anytime."

No you don't, Jeff - he's more welcome back in St. Louis. ;-)

In truth, I think Joe would be welcome just about anywhere he cares to go. I doubt that even Steinbrenner is crazy enough to fire the best manager in baseball. The real question is whether Joe is tired of putting up with all George's BS. I get the sense that he just might be...

...P.S. to U.S. residents: Turn you damn clock back. You forgot again, didn't you?...

Did not...neener, neener !! :-)

I doubt that even Steinbrenner is crazy enough to fire the best manager in baseball.

He's not in a position to. McKeon manages for the Marlins.

"P.S. to U.S. residents: Turn you damn clock back. You forgot again, didn't you?"
Well, yes and no. I remembered that I was supposed to, but didn't. After all, it's Sunday, so who cares? As long as I was up in time to watch football, it's no big deal. :-)

Hats off to the Marlins - the better team won this series. The team's weaknesses are much harder to see when your September games are against Detroit, Tampa and Baltimore.

A disturbing trend by the Yankees has now lasted 3 years IMO. I see the hitting having gone to sleep in each post-season since 2001. You could make a case that with Arizona and Florida it was better pitching, but then the Yankees were successful this postseason against Boston's best pitchers. A certain something is missing at the plate. This seems to me to be the kind of thing that can't just be cured in one offseason, especially with all of the other changes that will be taking place.

What should Torre do, if he isn't forced out? I can't see him managing (anywhere) past next year. I think the Yankees are about to enter a quiet period. If I'm Joe, I just stay quiet. I make 6 million next season. If I get fired, I make 6 million next season. Let George decide - this will be a rather unbalanced offseason in that office, so let the Man make his own bed. I have to think that Joe won't manage anymore after next year. He has his 4 rings, his place in the Hall of Fame is assured, he has a young daughter and a lot of $, why bother with Steinbrenner anymore than necessary? Let him be someone else's problem.

McKeon, best manager in baseball? Easy, now.....

WG, LI